


In The Morning

by Dontworryaboutitdawg



Category: Neon Genesis Evangelion
Genre: F/F, Fluff, High School, How Do I Tag, M/M, OMEGALUL, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, The Sopranos refrences, asuka is a gamer, i hope i get at least a 3 out of 5 goku average on this, made this on a bet, there's a jerma refrence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-04
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-15 14:01:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29190447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dontworryaboutitdawg/pseuds/Dontworryaboutitdawg
Summary: Yo I totally have never written a fanfiction before this and if you think otherwise you're trippin. I made this on a bet with my friend wherein I had to write an unironically good fic, get him and two other people to give it a rating, and if it gets at least 3 gokus out of 5 when February ends (I will probably continue updating it past then), then he has to buy me a whole ass case of Mountain Dew Baja Blast. Now that the backstory of why I made this is out of the way, let's get on to the actual summary.Yeah its just a high school AU. Pretty basic. I have an extensive backstory that I don't want to spoil just yet ;)Also if you were wondering why this fic is called what it is, Its the first song I listened to when I began writing this, and I think it fits the vibe. I have a playlist of the music I listened to while writing here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/19Mplu7mf55yuOjBkoBtusAlso I WILL name each chapter after a song. You can not stop me.Anyway, I'm done wastin' yer time, read the damn thing!
Relationships: Ayanami Rei/Souryuu Asuka Langley, Ikari Shinji/Nagisa Kaworu
Comments: 30
Kudos: 41





	1. The First Part

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey the name of this chapter is The First Part!!!! Get it??? y'know, by Superchunk?? Eh, whatever. Mostly setting up characters and the plot here. Hope you enjoy :))))))))

The summer was over and it was time for Shinji to face the last year of high school, which he contemplated while listening to his favorite music on the bus. It was an intimidating idea that he’d probably lose contact with his friends when it was over, but what could he do about it? He sat next to his sister, Rei, on the bus, who let him have the seat by the window, which he was staring out of. Rei was texting her girlfriend Asuka, whom she had started dating over the summer. Shinji was happy for his sister, but he felt that that was one thing he could never relate to her about. As the bus came to a halt, Shinji wondered if this year was going to be any different from the one before or the one before that. He got off and walked into the crowded school cafeteria with Rei. As the two of them sat down at a table, the others hailed them with fervency.

“Oh! Look who’s here!” Toji called out.

“Was your bus late or something? Or maybe we’re just so cool that we got here before you,” Kensuke remarked snidely.

“Hey!” Asuka snapped, “Rei is cooler than the two of youse combined! Shinji, on the other hand…” 

“Asuka, don’t talk about him like that,” Rei requested calmly. Asuka slung an arm around Rei as she sat down.

“Yeah, sorry Rei…” The red-haired girl chuckled.

Rei rolled her eyes, “Apologize to my brother, Asuka, not me”

Asuka groaned, “Sorry for calling you an uncool loser and a no-life nerd that will never get pussy in his entire life, Shinji.”

“Pussy? You kidding? He doesn’t care about that!” Toji chimed in.

“And there’s nothing wrong with that!” Kensuke added.

“Yeah, so it was kind of a compliment, if you think about it!” Asuka said, attempting to appeal to her girlfriend.

“No, and even if it was, it wouldn’t excuse the rest of it,” Rei replied.

“Aw, he doesn’t mind,” Asuka leered over the table at the subject of their conversation, “Right, Shinji?”

Shinji looked up and took an earbud out, “Hm?” 

Asuka sat back and laughed with the boys, “Don’t worry about it, Shinji!” she assured him.

He groaned and went to put his earbud back in, but stopped as someone arrived at the foot of their table. It was a tall boy wearing an oddly formal outfit, a button down white t-shirt and black dress pants. _He must be one of those people who dress up for the first day of school. I can’t say he doesn’t look good in it, though_ , Shinji thought. Also of note was his silver-grey hair, which Shinji would’ve found strange if not for his sister’s naturally blue hair.

“Excuse me, but I do believe I recognize you? If I’m not mistaken, I moved in next door to you this summer,” the student said to Asuka after gaining her attention.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I’ve seen you around. Whaddaya want?” Asuka questioned.

“Well, seeing as I’m new to this school, I think it would be a good idea to sit at a table with someone I at least recognize,” he deliberated, “So, could I possibly sit here?”

“Of course, we don’t mind,” Rei quickly invited before Asuka could tell him to piss off and make them all look like assholes.

Shinji realized he was staring when the new kid peered over at him, and he whipped his neck around to divert his gaze at the table. “Do you mind if I sit next to you?” the well-dressed stranger asked him. 

Shinji hesitantly looked up and said, “Me? Oh, uh, s-sure, I don’t mind.” 

The newcomer’s smile widened and he sat on the stool beside the nervous brunette. “Oh, how rude of me! My name is Kaworu Nagisa, I should have said that earlier'' He introduced himself to the table.

“Aye, I’m Toji. Good to meet ya, dawg,” he said as he reached to invite Kaworu to dab him up. He remained still, as Nagisa stared at him with a bewildered smile, anticipating to be greeted with a slap.

Kenuke jabbed his friend with his elbow, “Fuckin’ idiot,” he mumbled, then looked at Kaworu with a grin and said, “The name’s Kensuke, Kensuke Aida! I’m kinda runnin’ the show around here and-”

“You’re running two things, dickhead, Jack and shit, and Jack left town” Asuka sharply interrupted before clearing her throat to continue. “I’m Asuka, and this is Rei,” she motioned to her girlfriend, who politely waved with an apologetic look on her face. “And before you get any ideas, we’re both taken! By each other!” she announced proudly, tugging the blue-haired girl closer to emphasise her point.

“Don’t worry, I wasn't interested,” Kaworu chuckled, “And that’s not because I think you two are unattractive; it’s just, well…” he trailed off with a chuckle, ironically composed, considering his insinuation. Toji, Kensuke, and Asuka slowly grew devious grins and looked at Shinji. They were shot down by a pointed glare courtesy of Rei. Kaworu then looked over at the boy who had turned beet-red. “And what’s your name?” He asked.

“Um, I’m Shinji. It’s nice to meet you,” he mumbled.

“Shinji, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance” Kaworu greeted Shinji with a warm smile that the anxious boy could almost actually feel the heat off of. The gray-haired boy extended his arm to shake the other’s hand, which he hesitantly took. Shinji noted that Kaworu’s grip was firm, but not tight, and his hands were soft and warm. He then noticed that the taller student was patiently looking at him with a tolerant grin. 

_His eyes are red. That’s interesting, but they’re kinda pretty,_ Shinji thought to himself. It was at that moment that he took notice of the group of his peers trying not to laugh their asses off at this, frankly, embarrassing display. He quickly retracted his hand, looked away, and apologized.

Kensuke, eager to change the subject, asked, “Hey Kaworu, what period do ya have lunch? ‘Cause we all have it together, and it’d be pretty neat if you had it with us!”

Kaworu looked at his schedule on his phone and informed them, “Fourth period. I would hope you all have the same, yes?”

“Yep!” Kensuke chirped, “You should be able to see us, just look for the colorful lesbians, they’re with us!”

“Shut up!” the colorful lesbians yelled in tandem as the guys broke into laughter, and the first period bell rang. 

As they got up to go to their classes, Kaworu grabbed Shinji’s attention, “Sorry to bother you, but I’m not familiar with this school. Could you help me get to my first class?”

“Oh, sure, let me look here…” Shinji looked at the initiate’s schedule, “Oh, we have first period together!”

“Well, that’s convenient,” Kaworu smiled, and was led by Shinji to their first class together. 

As they settled down at their desks, their teacher introduced the class in the typical fashion. Shinji was unable to focus on what seemed like threats about how hard the class was going to be due to his lack of interest and abundance of fatigue. Shinjji got bored and peeked over at Kaworu, who, evidently, was also disinterested with the class. He found him returning his gaze. Shinji quickly turned back around and managed to feign attentiveness for the rest of the class, despite sporting a prominent blush. At the end of class, Kaworu again approached Shinji, “Sorry to bother you again, but could you help me get to my next class?”.

“Of course, it probably isn’t too far away. But I don’t think we’ll have the same class again,” He chuckled. 

Shinji inspected the schedule further and to his surprise, “Uh, funny thing, we actually do have this class together, and the class after that.”

“That makes navigation easier, don’t you think?” Kaworu asked.

“I guess so,” Shinji said as he blushed and took the lead to their next class. 

This time, he sat behind Kaworu so it would be harder to be caught staring. Well, Shinji said he wouldn't stare anymore, but... _My options are to look at a pear-shaped English teacher or an attractive boy with hair that looks like it’d be fun to pet, it’s kinda hard not to stare_ . Shinji mused. _Shit! What kind of thought was that? Fun to pet? That’s terrible. Who thinks about petting some guy they just met?_ He reprimanded himself silently. Shinji’s train of thought was then derailed when he saw the fluffy-haired kid look back at him and smile. 

The class after that was a science class, and they were lab partners. _How convenient,_ Shinji mused, _Now I just have to not do or think anything stupid like a normal human being whilst sitting next to Kaworu!_

Luckily for Shinji, the teacher was setting random shit on fire in a display that was evidently trying, and succeeding, to gain the attention of the class, rather than educating them about neutrons or whatever. It proved a significant enough distraction from whatever Shinji was doing in the previous periods. 

“That’s pretty cool, wouldn’t you say, Shinji?” Kaworu whispered.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, that’s pretty neat. I think it’s funny that in any other class, he’d get fired for exploding stuff,” Shinji joked.

Kaworu laughed, “That’s pretty funny, you’re right.” 

“Th-thanks,” Shinji said quietly. He only elicited a small chuckle from his classmate, but it was enough to send shivers throughout his body. 

When fourth period eventually finally came around, Shinji was eager to have a break from his classes. When he sat down at the table with Kaworu, Asuka and Kensuke were already there, yapping about god knows what. When the two boys sat down, Kensuke joked, “So you made it over here with only one colorful lesbian, huh?”

Kaworu laughed until he heard Asuka retort, “I swear one of these days I’m gonna tear off your arm and beat you to death with it, you fuckin’ dick.”

Shinji loudly cleared his throat to get the argument to stop before it scared Kaworu any more, “So where’s Toji and Rei?”

“Toji’s in line buying lunch like a loser and Rei’s,” Asuka paused to look around, “over there!” as she pointed to her girlfriend from across the cafeteria.

“It’s the other colorful lesbian!” Kensuke joked again as Rei sat next to her partner.

“Is he still making that joke?” Rei questioned.

“Yep, and it gets funnier every time” Asuka remarked sarcastically. Rei shifted her attention over to her brother and his new acquaintance to avoid indulging Kensuke any more.

“So, Shinji, how was your morning?” she asked. 

“My morning? Oh, well it turns out that me and Kaworu here have all of our morning classes together,” he answered, “And, uh, I sorta showed him around the school and stuff.”

“He was very helpful,” Kaworu added “The classes couldn’t hold my attention too well, but Shinji kept me entertained.”

“Well, that’s good to hear,” Rei stated. When lunch was eventually over after Toji and Kensuke had their daily loud and ultimately fruitless argument, Shinji went about the rest of his day without anything of note. It seemed to go by much slower than the morning. The teachers kept droning on and Shinji felt like he was in purgatory. At the end of the school day, he got on his bus alone and went home. 

Rei, on the other hand, went over to Asuka’s house to hang out. The two girls were lying down on the redhead’s bed in a loose embrace when Rei broke the silence.

“What are your thoughts on Kaworu?” she questioned.

“The new kid? Yeah he seems kinda cool. He was kinda getting flirty with your brother, though, don’t you think? And he’s obviously gay, I shouldn’t have to say that,” Asuka responded.

“That’s what I’m thinking about…”

“What, do you wanna hook them up or something?” Asuka sat up a bit.

“No, not necessarily. I do think Shinji would benefit from a partner, however. Maybe I should talk to Kaworu to make sure he’s okay.”

“Geez! Give Shinji some breathing room, for crying out loud! I’m sorry, but you worry too much about the kid!”

“I worry about him for good reason, Asuka. I just want to make sure this Kaworu guy isn’t some sort of creep.”

“Eh, he was a bit creepy, you’re right. Do what you must, I guess,” Asuka sighed, “But if he does turn out to be a good boyfriend for Shinji, then maybe he can take your position of his ‘guardian angel!’”

“That’s a good idea. Plus, I’d have more time to spend worrying about you,” Rei said as she placed a kiss on the other girl’s cheek.

“So everyone wins, really,” Asuka chuckled, “Now I’m invested in this plan!”


	2. The State I Am In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Those wacky lesbians do some funny espionage for the funny gays

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This shouldn't have taken so long, but SOME one took a long ass time to revise it. smh

The morning of the second day of school began much like the first. Asuka, Kensuke, and Toji were all having a loud and hostile conversation, contrasted by Rei’s annoyance and Shinji’s lack of interest. 

Kaworu eventually arrived and sat next to Shinji. “Good morning!” the silver-haired boy greeted his friend, wearing the same outfit he had on the previous day.

“Good morning, Kaworu!” Shinji chirped in response, matching the other boy’s smile. Asuka and Rei snapped to attention as soon as they noticed the two of them talking. 

The blue-haired girl began questioning the newcomer. “Why don’t you tell us about yourself, Kaworu?” she asked in a passive-aggressive tone. “Where are you from? What do you do in your free time? I’d like to get to know you better.”

“Oh, well, I moved here from Oregon in around June, and I enjoy playing music. It's one of my main hobbies,” he responded, caught off guard by her sudden inquisition.

“You play music? That’s so cool! What instrument do you play?” Shinji implored.

“Well, I consider myself a multi-instrumentalist, but my favorite is the piano. I mostly play songs from my favorite bands.” Kaworu continued, “I just play music to kill time, really. I don’t think I could really perform in front of a crowd, and I don’t have any recording equipment…”

“It’s still really neat, Kaworu. Some of my favorite music was made in a bedroom,” Shinji added.

“I’d love to play something for you, Shinji,” Kaworu offered. Shinji blushed in response as the redhead across the table butted in.

“Yeah, that’s really interesting,” she barked, trying to stop their conversation from going any further. “How do ya feel about our town? Been around much?”

“No, I haven’t. I’ve been relatively busy over the summer with moving in,” Kaworu answered.

“It took you the whole summer to get settled? That’s pretty weird.” Asuka prodded.

“Well, to tell the truth, I did most of the work moving in, as my parents have been busy with their jobs,” he replied calmly, hiding his shock from the intrusive interrogation. Before she could press any further, however, the bell rang. “It was nice talking to you,” Kaworu said to the girls before leaving to go to class with Shinji.

“He doesn’t seem that creepy,” Rei admitted to Asuka.

“Yeah, but I’ll keep my eye on him,” the taller girl said, “He goes on my bus, so I’ll do further reconnaissance there.”

The second day was much like the first. Shinji exchanged glances with Kaworu throughout the morning, Toji and Kensuke argued at lunch, and the afternoon dragged on for an eternity.

That evening at the Ikari household, Shinji was preparing dinner for his sister and father. He was humming a tune to himself and thought about the new student while stirring a pot. Rei walked downstairs to talk to her brother as he was cooking. 

“So, how was school, Shinji?” she asked nonchalantly.

“It was fine. Kaworu and I were doing a lab together, and he pointed out how our teacher kinda sounded like Tony Soprano,” the boy chuckled, “Then in the hallway later in the day, I accidentally walked into him and I dropped all my books. He helped me pick them up…” he trailed off, remembering the encounter.

“You seem to talk about Kaworu a lot,” Rei said, snapping Shinji back into reality. “He doesn’t know the town that well. Maybe you should take him out to see the sights.”

“T-take him out? I-I don’t know about that, Rei! I mean he’s nice and all… and sorta cute…,” he began mumbling again before going back to his talking voice, “But I don’t know about asking him out!”

“I didn't explicitly mean it like that, Shinji,” Rei lied, making her brother’s face turn a bright-red hue, “But who knows, maybe that’s a good idea, if he’s so nice.”

“No way! I couldn’t ask him out! We pretty much just met!” Shinji retorted loudly.

“Well, what if he asked you out?” Rei asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Why would— wait, what do you have planned, Rei?” Shinji blurted.

“Nothing…” Rei sang as she went back upstairs to her room.

“Wait!” the flustered lad cried out, but it was too late.

The girl slinked into her room and locked her door shut to prevent any intrusion, and called Asuka. “Any news from your recon mission?” Rei asked.

“Oh you bet I do! I asked for his Instagram, and when he did, he told me to give it to Shinji specifically!” Asuka relayed excitedly.

“Excellent! Send it to me, I have an idea to get him to go out with Shinji.” 

“Speaking of which, any intel about your brother?”

“Oh, he has a crush on Kaworu, without a doubt. He was telling me about them flirting at school today.” Rei extolled.

“What, did they bump into each other, drop their stuff, and lock eyes while picking it up?” Asuka joked.

“Yes, actually. They really did that. He even said he was cute!”

“Oh no, it's worse than we thought.”

“I’ll talk to Kaworu now before those two get out of our control.”

“Wait, Rei, before you leave...” Asuka interrupted.

“Yes, what is it?” Rei patiently asked.

“You, uh, aren’t busy tomorrow after school, are you?”

“No, I’m not. I assume you want me to wait for you at your therapist’s office?”

“Yeah, exactly. But you wouldn’t mind walking there with me, would you?” Asuka sheepishly requested.

“I’d be more than happy to, Asuka!” Rei exclaimed in a way that warmed Asuka’s heart.

“Great. I’ll let you get to it, then. Love you!”

“Love you too, Asuka,” Rei hung up with a sigh, and went to the account that supposedly belonged to Kaworu. She sent a direct message introducing herself.

“Hello Kaworu, this is Rei,” she typed, hoping that her text wasn’t too strange.

A minute later, Kaworu responded, “Hello Rei! You’re Shinji’s sister, right?” 

“Yes. I can send you his account if you like,” Rei deliberated the proper amount of information to dispel to Kaworu.

“That would be wonderful, thanks!” he responded.

“If you don’t mind me asking, is there any particular reason why having his account is ‘wonderful’?” Rei texted. 

Before she could receive a response, her door was being pounded on by Shinji who was yelling, “Rei, what did you do?!” he evidently got a message from Kaworu already.

“I will leave this up to you, Shinji. Either you ask him out, or I get him to ask you out,” she responded calmly in the face, or door, rather, of her brother’s aggression.

“Are you a psycho or something?! There’s no way he likes me back! Wait, I mean—” Shinji cried.

At that moment, Rei’s phone buzzed. There was a message from Kaworu that read, “I will tell you the truth because you seem like a trustworthy person. It’s because I like him :)”

“I wouldn’t say that, Shinji. Look at this,” Rei opened her door and showed her brother her phone.

Shinji was speechless. He just stared at the message, seemingly unable to believe what he was seeing.

“See, Shinji? There’s nothing to be afraid of,” she comforted the shell-shocked boy.

“Well he— what if he didn’t mean it like that?” Shinji panicked.

“If you won’t do it, then expect an invitation from Kaworu.” Rei remarked smugly.

“Alright, fine! If I’m gonna end up looking like an asshole, I should at least do it myself…” Shinji surrendered. He shuffled to his room, away from his grinning sister. The embarrassed brunette opened his phone to text his crush.

“hey kaworu, you said you haven't been around town, so if you want, i can give you a small tour” Shinji typed.

Almost instantly Kaworu responded, “I’d love that, Shinji! How does Friday after school sound?”

_ He said yes? He said he’d love to go out with me. Wait, nobody ever said anything about going out! For all I know, he could just think this is just two friends hanging out,  _ Shinji debated internally. He eventually replied, “that sounds okay with me”

Shinji waddled back to Rei’s room to say, “He said yes…”

“Really?” Rei asked excitedly, “That’s great to hear, Shinji!”

“B-but we never said this was a date or anything! I was just going to show him around town on Friday…” Shinji mumbled, and he slinked away back to the kitchen to finish dinner.

The next morning, Shinji was greeted by his friends’ stifled laughter. His head perked up and he instantly knew what they found so funny.

“Did you tell them?” he asked Rei with a hint of anger in his voice.

“Um, did you tell them, Asuka?” she asked.

“Um, did you tell Toji, Kensuke?” the redhead questioned in response.

“Heh heh, yeah…” he replied.

“Don’t worry, Shinji! We’re real proud of ya’!” Toji added. The whole table broke out into laughter, with the notable exception of Shinji, of course.

The embarrassed student buried his blushing face in his hands, but then felt someone sit next to him and the giggling choked to a stop. Hesitantly, Shinji looked up to see Kaworu smiling at him, and, of course, wearing the same outfit.

“Good morning, Shinji!” he sang, appearing ignorant to the tone of the table. Even Rei was having a hard time not laughing her ass off at the two of them.

_ These next couple of days are going to be hell,  _ Shinji deduced.

When Shinji’s first day of teasing and romantic tension was over, Asuka and Rei met up in the school’s courtyard. They began walking to the psychyatrists’ office building. 

“I bet you can’t wait until Friday, right, Asuka?” Rei asked as she laced her fingers together with her girlfriend’s.

“Yeah,” Asuka chuckled, “And for once, I kinda feel bad for Shinji. I’m still gonna bully him, but I won’t feel good about it.”

“You could just leave him alone, you know?”

“Not a chance, girl!” Asuka winked, and Rei rolled her eyes.

The two of them eventually made it to their destination and stepped inside. They sat together in the waiting room, still holding hands.

“I’ll wait for you out here, Asuka,” Rei assured Asuka when the red-head was being ushered into the office by the therapist.

Rei sat in the lobby with two other people reading magazines, and she joined them for the next hour. Eventually, Asuka’s guardian, Misato, walked in and sat next to Rei.

“Still coming with her, huh?” asked the purple haired woman.

“Of course I am.” Rei stated matter-of-factly.

“That’s nice. I appreciate it, Rei,” Misato said.

“Thank you.”

Misato tapped her foot and looked around the room for a minute before asking, “Is she almost done?”

Rei hummed in affirmation. The two of them sat in silence until Asuka walked out and greeted the two of them. 

“Rei, do you need a ride home?” Misato offered after their salutations.

“I can walk,” Rei replied.

“Aw, come on! Why not?” Asuka pleaded.

“Alright,” Rei sighed, “I’ll come with you.”

In the car, Misato put on “Hooker With a Penis,” by Tool, and was singing along with it. Asuka peered over at her girlfriend, who was looking out the window disinterestedly.

“Misato, could we… maybe put on something else?” Asuka suggested.

“YOU CAN SHOVE THAT FUCKING FINGER UP YOUR— hm? Oh, I thought you liked this song.” Misato stopped singing.

“I do, but I don’t think Rei does…” Asuka mumbled, barely audible under the music.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” Rei assured her, and Misato smiled and continued her wailing. 

The rest of the car ride, Rei had to endure the loud music and terrible singing courtesy of her chauffeur. 

When they had arrived at the Ikari household, Rei hopped out and said goodbye to her girlfriend. She went to her room, ears still ringing, and put on some of her own music to calm her nerves. She began her homework whilst enjoying Kendrick Lamar’s Hood Politics, and began anticipating what would transpire that Friday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate to leave it on such a cliffhanger, but next chapter is gonna be hype


	3. Jacking the Ball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy Vaseline day, you lonely virgins! Anyway, it finally happens in this one! You know, IT.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sopranos references

It was Friday.

_ Oh no. It's Friday.  _ Shinji thought after he turned his alarm off. He knew that after school, he would have to show Kaworu around town. He got dressed and headed downstairs to eat breakfast. Rei was already pouring milk in her cereal.

“Good morning.” She greeted. 

Shinji only grunted in response, being too tired to say any words, and he knew that being quiet was the best way to avoid saying anything stupid. 

When the two of them were ready, they walked to their bus and got on. Shinji tried his best to cool his nerves for that afternoon during the ride there. Rei noticed him nervously tapping his foot.

“Is something wrong, Shinji?” She asked, feigning ignorance.

“Huh? Oh, well, I guess I’m a little nervous about… Showing Kaworu around the town this afternoon” He confessed.

“That makes sense”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, it’s only natural that you’re nervous for your first date-”

“IT’S NOT-” Shinji noticed that he was yelling, and quieted down, “It’s not a date. Nobody said anything about it being a date, Rei.”

“I guess we’ll just see how it pans out, then.” Rei shrugged. Shinji scoffed, and turned towards the window to hide his blushing face.

When they got to school, they were met with the same fanfare as they always had.

“Oh! Look who it is!” Toji yelped.

“Would you stop with the ‘Oh!’ already?” Asuka barked as she put her arm around Rei’s shoulders. “I know you like LARPing as a member of the North Jersey mob, but keep it to yourself!”

“Hey, you were the one who told me to watch The Sopranos, chump!” Toji fired back.

“I love that show!” Kaworu announced as he suddenly appeared at the table, evidently able to hear their discussion from across the cafeteria.

Everyone’s attention snapped to the new arrival who sat next to Shinji, as expected. 

“Hey Kaworu, I was wonderin’ if you’re busy after school today?” Kensuke giggled, fearless of Rei’s wrath of which he would most certainly face for asking this.

“Dude, you’ve got balls of steel. I admire that.” Toji whispered to his friend. Rei’s eyes had fire in them, and they were aimed right at Kensuke.

“Me? No, sorry. I’m busy today with something very important.” Kaworu responded.

“Oh, okay. That’s cool, then.” Kensuke replied, now remembering that he could be slaughtered by the furious girl at his table for saying anything else.

Shinji was also in despair, as Kensuke reinforced the thought of going out with Kaworu.  _ God damn it.  _ He thought,  _ I can’t take much more of this. _

First period felt like ages for Shinji. He sat with his back stiff, knowing that his crush was staring right at him.

“Mr. Nagisa, please pay attention!” The teacher called out. This cleared up any doubts that Kaworu was peering at him.

During second period, Shinji had to physically block Kaworu out of his vision with his hand. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, the teacher had a small project for the class that required two people to pair up. Much to the class’s joy, the students could choose their partner.

_ Oh this is great. It’s not like I know anyone else but Kaworu in this class. I might as well get this over with.  _ Shinji gathered his courage and walked over to his spiky-haired classmate.

“Hey, Kaworu, you wanna pair up for this?” He asked.

“Of course I would, Shinji!” Kaworu eagerly replied.

They had to read a paragraph and do an analysis on it together, which was fairly easy. They finished early, which was surprising, considering how much Shinji was stuttering and tripping over his own words.

“I guess we have some free time, then.” Kaworu mused out loud.

“Yeah, we do.” Shinji replied flatly, trying to suppress any emotion that may go out of control.

“Hmm… Well, is there anything in particular you’re looking forward to showing me after school today?” Kaworu asked.

“I guess I’m looking forward to showing you everything.” Shinji quickly realized what he had just said, and corrected himself, “I mean, uh, there’s the skating rink, and the Wawa, and the park…”  _ Shit! Fuck! Did I really just say that? That’s really unfortunate.  _ Shinji yelled at himself internally

“Well, I’m looking forward to seeing all that with you, Shinji” Kaworu offered a smile.

“Eh, yeah, you live next to Asuka, right? I’ll mentally plan out a route for us to take.” Shinji scratched his chin in contemplation.

“That’s very smart of you, Shinji!” Kaworu complemented Shinji.

The next period where they sat together was less talkative, as their teacher demanded full concentration from the class. This didn’t stop Kaworu from cracking a few quiet jokes with Shinji, though.

Before lunch, Rei had made a point to remind Toji and Kensuke to refrain from any teasing, which they had no choice but to oblige. She did not want a repeat of what had occurred during the morning.

When lunch did come around, Kaworu and Shinji were greeted with mumbles from the other two boys. This instantly made Shinji aware that Rei had told them to keep quiet, which only served to make him more embarrassed. Asuka, however, did not get the message.

“So, Rei and I are gonna go out this weekend! Any of you guys get any dates, huh?” She remarked. Toji and Kenuke looked at her with absolute terror.

“Nothing official for me, yet.” Kaworu spoke up.

The silence at the table was deafening. Shinji was in hell.

Rei put her food down with a thud. “Asuka, can I speak with you for a moment in the hallway?”

The two girls got up to have their discussion. Shinji felt ashamed and somewhat responsable that his friends couldn’t even make fun of him anymore. Everyone, except Kaworu, hung their heads as if they were mourning the death of their red-headed accomplice.

When they came back, Asuka looked like a sad dog, and Rei wore a blank expression. The atmosphere was tense, and they all ate their lunches quietly for what felt like ages.

_ This is the worst. It’s all my fault, too. _

The rest of the day felt like being dragged through gravel for Shinji. He sat during his last period and just watched the clock tick towards the end of the day. Seconds felt like minutes to him, until, eventually, the bell rang. He went to the place that he and Kaworu agreed to meet earlier.

_ He’s not here yet, _ He thought after it was two minutes past the time they agreed on.  _ He’s probably ghosted me. _

A minute later, Kaworu showed up and apologized, “Sorry to keep you waiting, Shinji. I got a bit lost without you. I hope I didn’t inconvenience you.”

“You’re fine, don’t worry about it. Shall we?” Shinji offered to begin their walk.

“We shall. Lead the way.”

They began walking away from the school side by side. Shinji occasionally glanced over at Kaworu, who then returned the glance, and Shinji promptly looked back ahead. 

Shinji finally broke the silence, “So, up ahead is the Wawa.” He gestured ahead to the convenience store at the end of the road. “If you’ve never heard of it, it’s like 7/11 but better.”

“Really? How so?” Kaworu prodded.

“They’ve got a deli, and, um, well, it’s just better, trust me.” Shinji attempted to justify his statement.

“I trust you.” Kaworu assured.

When they walked in the store, Shinji showed him the sandwiches. 

“So, they sell subs?” Kaworu asked.

“No! Listen, I know you’re new around here, but they’re called hoagies.” Shinji corrected the other boy.

“I see. I assume they’re better as well?” Kaworu chuckled as he placed his order.

“Of course they are.” Shinji remarked.

When they were checking out, Shinji butted in. “Uh, Kaworu, I should pay for your stuff. I mean, I’m the one showing you around and all...” 

“That’s very nice of you, Shinji.” Kaworu accepted with a smile.

They then continued their walk, and Shinji was surprised at how smoothly his afternoon was going as they engaged in small talk along the way.

“So, why is the ice rink such an important landmark?” Kaworu asked.

“In this town, hockey is pretty much the only thing anyone cares about. Actually, Asuka is on the school’s hockey team. I’m surprised she hasn’t bragged about it to you yet” Shinji answered.

“I’ve never heard of a school having a hockey team before.”

“Really? Huh, the West coast really is different. But then again, there’s only, like, five other schools who do it around here.”

“I guess the East coast is different too, then.” Kaworu chuckled.

They arrived at the stadium, which was empty at that time of year.

“I was expecting it to be an outdoor affair,” Kaworu stated.

“Yeah, I don’t know why it isn’t part of the school. Apparently starting the hockey team here was quite a big hassle back in the day, so that may have something to do with it.” Shinji informed the other. “I just realized that I have nothing of purpose to show here other than the fact it exists.”

“That’s okay, Shinji. I enjoyed your story, and just walking with you is fun on its own.” Kaworu said with a grin.

“Thanks, Kaworu.” Shinji mumbled under his breath.

The two boys made their way to the park, and walked along the path that was provided there. It had begun getting late, and the sun was starting to set. 

Kaworu motioned to a bench that was atop the hill they were on, “Why don’t we take a break and we can watch the sunset and eat our food?”

“That sounds like a good idea.” Shinji answered.  _ Watch the sunset? Is that, like, a romantic thing? Am I overthinking this? _

They began eating their hoagies on the bench and looked out at the orange sun.

“Mm… This is good, you’re right, Shinji!” Kaworu exclaimed. “I knew it was a good idea to trust you.”

When they were done eating, they remained seated to overlook the setting ball of fire that was before them. Their hands were mere inches apart on the surface of the bench. 

Kaworu gained Shinji’s attention, “Shinji, this may seem like a weird and sudden question…” He started.

_ Does Kaworu look nervous? Wait, is he gonna- _

“Is this a date?” He finished.

_ He did. _

“Uh, a date?” Shinji stuttered. “I dunno… Um…”

“Nevermind, forget it” Kaworu wore a sad smile, as he was seemingly rejected.

“Wait, no!” Shinji interjected. He mustered up all of his strength to place his hand over Kaworu’s. “I… I actually would be okay with that… If it were… A date…”

Kaworu’s face instantly lit it up. “Shinji, I’m so happy to hear that!”

“What? Really?” Shinji blurted out.

“Of course! To be completely honest, you have had my interest since the day we met.” Kaworu admitted.

“I’ve actually felt the same way, Kaworu.” Shinji confessed in turn, looking at the ground to avoid getting any more flustered.

“We should start heading back, now. It’s getting late, and I’m sure we’ll have many more opportunities like this in the future.” Kaworu stated

“Yeah, I guess we will,” Shinji agreed.

The two got up and began going back to Kaworu’s house while still holding hands. The two were smiling the whole way home as Shinji wore a bright-red hue on his face. Once they arrived, Kaworu stopped before going inside, and wrapped his arms around Shinji.

“Thank you for a wonderful evening, Shinji” He whispered.

“Oh, uh, no problem. Thanks to you too.” Shinji stuttered.

Kaworu stood back and shot Shinji a warm grin. “Have a nice night, Shinji.” He walked inside and closed the door. Shinji stood dumbfounded at his new boyfriend’s doorstep for a moment before heading home. 

_ Oh my god. That really just happened. I’m dating Kaworu now. Okay, don’t panic. It’ll be fine, maybe tensions around my friends will lower. But maybe it’ll be more tense! Maybe Rei will be more protective of me. Oh, no. What will I tell dad? I never came out to him! I don’t need to anyway. He probably wouldn’t care. I need to stop worrying about things so much, I just went out with Kaworu! Wait, what if I did something wrong? What if he’s just making fun of me? No, he seems too nice for that. But what do I know? Whatever, I should probably just enjoy it for now. Kaworu’s my boyfriend!  _

Before he knew it, Shinji made it back to his house. He slinked into his room, tactfully avoiding his sister for as long as he could. He flopped on his bed, let out a sigh, and closed his eyes.

_ Kaworu’s my boyfriend…  _ Shinji thought as he quickly drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gay as hell!


	4. Summer Babe - Winter Version

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter starts as soon as the last one left off. Most of it is Asuka and Rei on a date, discussing the socioeconomic implications of Shinji and Kaworu's relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More fucking Sopranos references. Asuka plays Doom. This is hype.

Shinji was woken up five minutes after he had passed out on his bed by a knock on the door. 

"Shinji?" Rei made herself known. 

"Huh? Yeah. come in." He mumbled and sat up.

Rei walked in her brother's bedroom. "So, how was it?" She began, "Your date with Kaworu, I mean."

"It- it, uh, it was pretty fun..." Shinji looked down at his sheets with a smile.

"Interesting, you didn't deny that it was a date." Rei rubbed her chin curiously. 

"Yeah, well, it, uh, was, uh, yeah..." Shinji scratched the back of his head, trying to think of a way out of the awkward situation he found himself in.

"What did you do? He treated you well, right?" Rei prodded.

"What? Yeah, he was nice. I just showed him around town, and we, uh, told each other that we liked each other." Shinji admitted.

"I told you so." Rei announced smugly, "By the way, can you make dinner?"

"I'm a little tired, and I already ate. You can just microwave some of those Chik'n Nuggets." Shinji said, flopping onto his back.

"Alright, but you can tell me about your date later." Rei left to go make MorningStar Farms Chik'n Nuggets. Soon after, Shinji got a text from his new boyfriend.

“Hello, Shinji. I hope you got home safely!”

“yeah i’m alright”

“That’s great to hear! Did you have fun today?”

“i did. btw we’re boyfriends now right? just making sure” Shinji hesitated before sending the message.

“Of course! As long as it’s okay with you.”

“thats ok with me” Shinji tried to use the digital format he was communicating in to mask the fact that he was internally freaking out.

“Fantastic! I look forward to going out with you more in the future!”

“me too” Shinji buried his face in his pillow and let out a yell.

The next day, Asuka woke up bright and early at 1 PM after Kaji woke her up. She rolled out of bed and started the day. After she got done with her “morning” ritual, she texted her girlfriend.

"hey where are we meeting today?"

"My place. Is 2:00 PM a good time?" Rei responded.

"man i was thinking 2 am lol"

"I assume that's a yes?"

"yeah i'll see you then"

"I'll tell you about Shinji and Kaworu's date when you get here"

"no way thats so hype" Asuka laughed.

Asuka closed her phone and sat at her desk to use her computer. Just as she was booting up a game, Misato called for her to take out the trash. Asuka groaned and got up to do as she was told. As she walked out, something caught her eye. It was Kaworu, who was standing in his yard, looking up at the sky. 

Asuka stared at him bewilderedly before getting his attention. "Hey, what are you doing?"

"Oh, I'm looking at the clouds. It's a pleasant day out, too." Kaworu responded.

“Yeah… So, anyway, how was your little arrangement with Shinji yesterday?” She grinned as she threw the trash in the bin.

“It was wonderful, thank you for asking.” He responded.

“Alright, well, catch you later, then.” Asuka went back inside and got back on her computer. 

Some time later, as Asuka was gaming, she got a call from Rei and she picked up once she got to a safe spot in the game.

“Talk to me.” Asuka opened.

“Are you on your way yet?” Rei asked.

“Huh?”

“It’s al-” Rei was cut off.

“Aw, FUCK! Who the fuck at Id thought Lost Souls were a good idea? Worst enemy in the entire game. What were you saying?”

“I was saying that you should start heading over, as it’s currently… 1:55 PM Eastern Standard Time.”

“Heh, Eastern Standard Time… Wait, FUCK! Shit, I didn’t realize that it was that late! I’m sorry, Rei, I’ll be on my way now! This game sucks balls, anyway.” Asuka hung up and closed the game. She ran out of the house after telling Misato where she was going. She ran two blocks until she ran out of breath. She checked the time and saw that it was 2 PM. Once she saw that, she went back to running. “Shit, I gotta start conditioning for hockey more…” She huffed.

Eventually, Asuka made it to the Ikari household and rang the doorbell. Almost instantly, Rei opened the door. “It is 1416 hours military time.” Rei informed her partner.

“Affirmative, ma’am.” Asuka sighed. “Can I come in? I need to sit down,”

“Of course. Can I get you something to drink?” Rei offered.

“Yeah, I could use a water” Asuka requested as she walked in and flopped on a couch.

Rei sat down next to the red-head and handed her the water after getting it in the kitchen. She downed the entire glass in a single gulp. 

“I appreciate that you rushed to get here.” Rei stated.

“Yeah, and I woke up, like, an hour ago, too. Oh! Guess who I saw! I was taking out the trash and I saw Kaworu! He was just looking at the sun and-” Asuka retold excitedly, but Rei put up her hand and pointed upstairs. “Oh, right, Shinji’s home.”

“We can discuss this elsewhere.” Rei said.

“And where is ‘elsewhere’? Did you have someplace in mind?” Asuka asked.

“Actually, I did. I think you’ll like it.”

“Cool, but before we go anywhere, I gotta catch my breath.” 

“In the meantime, is there anything you want to do?” Rei slid her hand over Asuka’s.

“Not really. I just wanna chill out for a bit…” Asuka leaned on her girlfriend’s shoulder. Rei, in turn, strung her arms around her and placed a kiss on top of her head, and Asuka returned the favor. They remained in this comfortable position until Asuka broke the silence. “Alright, my energy is recharged.” She sat up, but Rei kept her arms around Asuka, and leaned into her. “Okay, Rei, you can let go now.”

“No.” She shook her head.

“Don’t make me pry you off!” Asuka threatened with a grin.

Rei looked her dead in the eyes. “I’d like to see you try.”

“You asked for it!” Asuka grabbed her and tried to pull her off, but Rei’s hold remained strong. Eventually, Asuka gave up. “Fine, I guess you won’t be able to take me out to that place you wanted to show me, and you can’t tell me about Shinji’s date.”

“Okay, we can go now,” Rei sighed and released Asuka, “But you’re staying close to me.”

“Of course, I was going to anyways.” Asuka blushed and shifted her eyes to the ground. They got up and walked out the door. The two held hands, and were standing so close that their shoulders would have been touching if not for the height difference between the two. 

"So, Asuka, I'm sure you'll want to know about Shinji's date now." Rei said.

"You know it!"

"Notice how I said 'date' so confidently."

"Wait, you're saying he actually, like, said it was a date?"

"He did."

"What'd they do?"

"They held hands, and Kaworu hugged him after they finally admitted to liking each other."

"That's what he told you, huh?" Asuka chuckled.

"Asuka, don't even joke about that."

"What? I didn't say anything!"

Rei rolled her eyes and led the way to her predetermined date location. 

"So, where are we going?" Asuka asked.

"A nature reserve." Rei answered.

"A nature reserve? I didn't know there was one of those around here."

"It's just a park, but it's mostly empty whenever I'm there, so we'll be alone."

"Sounds... Interesting. Are we gonna do anything afterwards, or are we just going to a park?"

"If it sounds boring to you, Asuka, we can do something else."

"No it's fine, Rei. I know you wanted to go there, and it's probably cool, but I was just wondering..." Asuka mumbled.

"Alright, we can do something afterwards that you want to do. If you get bored, just let me know. I wouldn't want you to not enjoy our date." Rei assured her. 

"Thanks, Rei." Asuka smiled.

They arrived at the entrance of the reserve and began walking on the trail. Fingers still intertwined, they took in the natural scenery. They wandered until they stumbled upon a pond, and sat on a hill that was beside it. Asuka curled up with her girlfriend, who propped her up so the two of them could watch the flock of ducks that were floating in the water.

"This is nice." Asuka broke the silence. Rei simply hummed in agreement. Eventually, the ducks flew away, and the couple had nothing to watch, but they remained where they were. Asuka looked up and into Rei's eyes, which matched her gaze. "This was a good idea, you were right." Asuka admitted with a blush.

"Thank you, Asuka. Did you want to leave now?" Rei responded.

"Not yet."

"Why? Was there something you wanted to-" Rei cut herself off when she felt Asuka's hand stroke her face.

"Yeah, I wanted to do this." Asuka moved in and pressed their mouths together in a deep kiss. After a minute, Asuka pulled away and said nonchalantly, "Okay, we can go now."

Rei burst into laughter at the sudden change in tone, and Asuka joined her. It wasn't often that Asuka got to hear Rei laugh, so she made sure to enjoy every second of it. "Okay," Rei calmed down, "Where'd you want to go?"

"Uh, well, I never thought that far." Asuka confessed and stood up, "How about getting something to eat?"

"Sounds good. Should we just go where we always go?"

"I don't see why not, it's the best pizza in town. I think I have a cupon for that place on me..." Asuka checked her pockets, "Here! 2 for 1 on a 2 liter of soda."

"So we don't have to argue on what we get."

"Perfect! Let's go!" Asuka reached down and picked Rei up, and they went on their way. 

At the restaurant, Rei got a bottle of ginger ale, and Asuka got Mountain Dew. They ordered a plain pizza, as Rei didn't want any toppings, and Asuka didn't want to spend the money. As they sat in the small establishment, they chatted and ate their meal.

"So," Asuka swallowed her food, "Shinji and Kaworu. What's, uh, what's up with that?"

"What's up with them?" Rei asked.

"Yeah, like, how do you feel about them? Being a couple, and all."

"To be honest, I'm optimistic. Kaworu seems like a nice enough guy, and Shinji really likes him from what I've heard."

"So, what you're saying is that, so far, this is a victory?"

"I'm assuming that you mean that we succeeded at getting Shinji a boyfriend so that I wouldn't have to be the only one worrying about him. In which case, yes, so far, this is a victory."

"We win! Hell yeah!" Asuka shouted enthusiastically, gaining the attention of the whole restaurant.

"Hey! Don't disrespect the pizza parlor!" One of the patrons yelled.

"Sorry." Asuka apologized.

When they were done, and it was time to pay, Asuka reached for her pocket, but Rei stopped her. "I'll pay tonight. I was the one who dragged you to that nature reserve."

"Rei, you don't need to do that. I liked it there, it was really fun." Asuka objected.

"I'm glad you liked it. Still, it's on me tonight."

"Alright," Asuka conceded, "I wouldn't wanna turn down free food." She winked.

The couple walked back home to Rei's house and they stopped at the front door.

"Well, I had fun today, but Misato wants me to go home." Asuka said.

"See you Monday, then." Rei kissed Asuka and opened the door to walk in.

"Goodnight, Rei."

"Goodnight."

Asuka jogged home, and went seven minutes without having to catch her breath.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it, folks. Let's hope that we get that bread (Mountain Dew Baja Blast) 5/5 gokus PLEASE

**Author's Note:**

> You BETTER have liked this. 4/5 gokus AT LEAST.


End file.
